


Silence After the Storm

by coastalraccoon



Category: Warriors - Erin Hunter
Genre: F/F, M/M
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2019-10-21
Updated: 2020-08-12
Packaged: 2020-12-27 19:56:58
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Graphic Depictions Of Violence, Major Character Death
Chapters: 6
Words: 18,321
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/21124367
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/coastalraccoon/pseuds/coastalraccoon
Summary: "You must meet the cat who is nested in the past with the ears for the future, the cat who carries the black sun in their throat, and the cat with the tricks of the waves in their paws."Dovewing has lost her entire family and feels shame for not being able to save them. She carries the weight of her clanmates' bodies, as well as the weight of her powers.Hollowflight helps RiverClan rebuild after the battle and tries to rebuild his relationship with those that were once his friends.Sunstrike feels unwelcome in WindClan as the scorching eyes of Onestar watch her; she doesn't feel any safer when she falls for a warrior across the border.Stoatpaw fears for his life as he is cursed with the knowledge of an ancient being that his Clan will be destroyed if Blackstar continues his ways."Borders mean nothing when all is at risk.”





	1. Allegiances

**THUNDERCLAN **

**leader**

cinderstar / _ gray tabby molly _

**deputy**

rosepetal / _ dark cream molly _

_ / apprentice, molepaw ↗ _

**medicine cat**

jayfeather / _ slim gray tabby tom with blind blue eyes _

**warriors **

sandstorm / _ pale ginger tabby molly _

brackenfur / _ golden brown tabby tom _

dustpelt / _ dark brown tabby tom _

berrynose / _ cream-colored tom with a stumpy tail _

mousewhisker / _ gray-and-white tom _

lionblaze / _ fluffy golden tabby tom with amber eyes _

foxleap / _ reddish tabby tom _

_ / apprentice, cherrypaw ↗ _

toadstep / _ chubby black-and-white tom _

blossomfall / _ tortoiseshell and white molly _

briarlight / _ dark brown molly with paralyzed hind legs _

dovewing / _ small pale gray molly with green-blue eyes _

poppyfrost / _ calico molly with bright blue eyes _

**apprentices**

cherrypaw / _ ginger tabby molly _

molepaw / _ brown-and-cream tom _

**queens **

sorreltail / _ spotted calico molly with amber eyes, mother of: lilykit, a gray-brown and white tabby molly, and seedkit, a golden molly, and fostering: snowkit, a white tom, and dewkit, a gray-and-white tom. _

daisy / _ long-furred cream-colored molly from the horseplace _

ferncloud / _ gray speckled molly _

**elders **

mousefur / _ small dusky brown molly _

**SHADOWCLAN**

**leader**

blackstar / large white tom with jet black paws

**deputy**

rowanclaw / ginger tom with green eyes

**warriors **

oakfur / _ brown tom _

tawnypelt /_ tortoiseshell molly with green eyes _

_ / apprentice, stoatpaw ↗ _

applefur / _ mottled brown molly _

smokefoot / _ black tom _

owlclaw / _ light brown tabby tom _

shrewfoot / _ gray molly with black paws _

_ / apprentice, pouncepaw ↗ _

snowbird / _ pure-white molly with green eyes _

scorchfur / _ dark gray tom _

starlingwing / _ ginger tom with a torn tail _

cloverfoot / _ gray tabby molly _

berryheart / _ black-and-white molly _

ripplefur (rippletail) / _ white tom _

**apprentices **

stoatpaw / _ mottled ginger and white tom with blue eyes _

pouncepaw / _ brown tabby tom _

**queens **

kinkfur / _ gray tabby molly with fur that sticks out at all angles, mother of: sparrowkit, a pale brown tabby tom, and dewkit, a gray molly _

ivytail / _ black, white, and tortoiseshell molly, mother of: spikekit, a brown tom, and grasskit, a brown tabby molly _

**elders **

whitewater / _ white molly with long fur, blind in one eye _

**WINDCLAN**

**leader **

onestar / _ brown tabby tom _

**deputy**

crowfeather / _ dark gray tom _

_ / apprentice, featherpaw ↗ _

**medicine cat**

kestrelflight / _ mottled gray tom _

**warriors **

harespring / _ brown-and-white tom with large ears _

_ / apprentice, larkpaw ↗ _

leaftail / _ dark ginger tabby tom with amber eyes _

_ / apprentice, oatpaw ↗ _

nightcloud / _ black molly with yellow eyes _

breezepelt / _ black tom with amber eyes _

sedgewhisker / _ light brown tabby molly _

swallowtail / _ dark gray molly with one eye _

_ / apprentice, crouchpaw ↗ _

sunstrike /_ tortoiseshell she-cat with a large white mark on her forehead _

whiskernose / _ light brown tabby tom _

furzepelt / _ fuzzy gray-and-white molly _

boulderfur / _ large pale gray tom _

**apprentices **

larkpaw / _ pale brown tabby molly _

featherpaw_ /fluffy light gray tabby molly _

oatpaw /_ pale brown tabby tom _

crouchpaw / _ ginger tabby tom with a paler chest _

**elders **

tornear / _ gray tabby tom with one missing ear _ _  
_

**RIVERCLAN **

**leader **

reedstar / _ black tom with gray-blue eyes _

**deputy**

graymist / _ pale gray tabby molly _

**medicine cat**

willowshine / _ dark gray tabby molly _

**warriors **

dapplenose / _ mottled gray molly _

_ / apprentice, heronpaw ↗ _

mintfur / _ light gray tabby tom _

icewing / _ white molly with green eyes _

minnowtail / _ dappled dark gray-and-white molly _

petalfur / _ small gray-and-white molly _

mallownose / _ light brown tabby tom _

_ / apprentice, podpaw ↗ _

robinwing / _ brown and cream tortoiseshell-and-white tom _

_ / apprentice, curlpaw ↗ _

mossyfoot / _ brown-and-white molly _

hollowflight / _ chubby dark brown tabby tom _

rushtail / _ light brown tabby tom _

**apprentices **

heronpaw / _ dark gray and black tom _

podpaw / _ gray-and-white tom _

curlpaw / _ pale brown molly _

**queens **

duskfur / _ brown tabby molly, caretaker of: lizardkit, a light brown tom, and perchkit, a gray-and-white molly _

**CATS OUTSIDE THE CLANS**

smoky / _ muscular gray-and-white tom who lives in a barn at the horseplace _

floss / _ small gray-and-white she-cat who lives at the horseplace _

jessy / _ dark brown molly with amber eyes, kittypet _

frankie / _ gray tabby tom, kittypet _

benny / _ black-and-white tom, kittypet _

lake / _ gray tabby molly _

pearl_ / silver tabby molly with a long tail _


	2. Chapter One

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Dovewing takes in all the damage the battle with the Dark Forest has caused.

Dovewing took in deep, heavy breaths. 

Around her, was death.

The deafening sound of blood dripping down from dens and the soft shuffling of injured cats made it impossible for the small warrior to move. No more yowling echoed off the walls and no more fur was torn, indicating the battle had been one. But at what cost? Dovewing didn’t want to open her eyes and find out.

Through her deep breaths she could tell many cats were dead or seriously wounded; that and Jayfeather’s mumbling beside her. He gently nudged her. She could feel him breathing on her shoulder; he was just as frightened as she was. 

She finally opened her eyes. 

_ No… _

Not too far away from her, in the center of camp, was Ivypool’s body. Her face was frozen in rage as she had gone down fighting Hawkfrost. Brambleclaw wasn’t too far. His face was peaceful, as he had bled out. Between the two deceased cats was an outline of a third. Hawkfrost had died not too long after he killed his brother and former Dark Forest apprentice. 

Jayfeather whispered, “Get up, we need to help the other cats. There's so many bodies...they reek.” His normally sharp voice became soft and flat. Dovewing only had to look towards the medicine den to see why.

Leafpool laid in the moonlight, her throat slashed open. The blood seemed fresh, she had died recently. Briarlight was desperately trying to shake her awake. She looked to Dovewing, fear lacing her gaze.

Dovewing could only shake her head and look away. She wanted to close her eyes but at the same time she didn’t want her clanmates’ bodies to rot in the clearing. Not only that but she had scratches across her pelt that needed to be treated.  _ I have to be strong for my clanmates.  _

With trembling paws she stood and looked to Jayfeather. She asked, “Do you want me to bring the injured cats into the medicine den?”

Jayfeather’s head tilted in the direction of Dustpelt and Sandstorm lifting up a yelping Foxleap. “Yes, that'd be...appreciated.” He slowly turned and headed towards Leafpool, his mentor and biological mother.

_ Maybe Squirrelflight-  _ She hoped to see the ginger molly taking charge at the other side of camp, only to see Lionblaze standing over her body, frozen in shock.  _ Brambleclaw, Squirrelflight, and Leafpool are all dead...and Hollyleaf too... _ Dovewing felt her stomach churn with horror. 

Whispers filled her ears of the grieving cats. Soon wails from the other clans filled her head, making her shake. She bit her tongue and prayed silently that the voices would leave her alone, that she’d have time to grieve. But they didn’t. They assaulted her, as though they were begging her for help.

“Leave me alone…” she muttered. “Please.” She collapsed and covered her ears with her paws. 

Her ears were trying to work against her paws, trying desperately to absorb every breath from her clanmates and the other clans. They wanted to hear every sob, cry, and sniffle the surviving cats had to offer. Her fur spiked up. Her tail began to lash.

“Leave me alone, leave me alone,” she repeated, hoping a StarClan cat or any cat of higher power would stop it all. She wanted it all to be a dream, she wanted Ivypool to be alive, she wanted Jayfeather and Lionblaze to be happy, she never wanted so much death. 

The voices only became louder and clearer.

_ “Where’s Ashfoot?” _

_ “Please get up!” _

_ “We’ll have to bury all the bodies later…” _

_ “This can’t be happening! Not her!” _

“Leave me alone...Leave me alone…”

_ “Everything hurts...I can barely move.” _

_ “Please StarClan bless us with something good.” _

_ “Where’s my daughter!?” _

“Please, leave me alone…”

_ “What are we going to do? _

_ “StarClan help us!” _

_ “They’re all dead!” _

_ “Please-” _

Dovewing’s eyes shot open as her upper body was thrust upwards. She screeched to the empty sky, “Leave me alone! Please! Leave me alone!” She fell back down only moments later. “Let me be…”

She buried her face in her paws. 

A cat came over and licked Dovewing on the head. “Dovewing, are you alright?” Cinderheart’s soft voice reminded her of Whitewing far too much. “I can take you to the medicine den if you need-”

“N-No...I’m fine, my wounds aren’t too bad,” Dovewing mewed, her voice muffled by her tightly curled paws. 

“Is it your powers? Lionblaze told me they can bother you, being able to hear and see everything.” Cinderheart sighed and took a seat in front of Dovewing. “Just tell me something I can do, anything. I know something’s wrong with you, I can feel it.”

Dovewing looked up, ears pinned back. “I can hear the cats from the other clans. They’re mourning.” She looked back down. “I can still hear them. I don’t want to hear them...I just want it to stop.”

“I think a start would be getting you out of the clearing. I would suggest the medicine den but-” she paused and looked into the medicine den, which had begun to fill up. “Yeah, that wouldn’t be a good spot to go.”

Mousefur limped over to the two mollies. “She can stay in the elder’s den if she wants to,” the elder croaked, “it’s…” she glanced over at Purdy’s body, “pretty empty now.”

Dovewing meowed, “That’d be nice...better than the medicine den.” She slowly stood. “Uh...thank you.”

Mousefur nodded and limped past her to get to the medicine den. “My nest is in the back, it’s the one thing not destroyed in there. Watch your step, the branches are a lot less noticeable than they are in the warrior’s den. Stay as long as you’d like.” She smiled, a contrast to her tucked tail. 

Dovewing padded into the elder’s den. It was calm and quiet. The beech tree branches made a perfect roof along with the honeysuckle and leaves tying them together. Just enough light filtered in to not leave the den completely dark. Dovewing’s eyes quickly adjusted to the dark, so it wasn’t too much of an issue, but it left the den rather dull. 

Mousefur’s nest sat alone in the back. Purdy’s nest had been torn to shreds when he was forcefully pulled out of the den. A few bits of the deceased elder’s nest were tangled with Longtail’s nest. Mousefur kept the blind elder’s nest around for so long when Dovewing entered she thought he was going to be there to greet her. 

Dovewing heard a familiar shuffling sound as she curled up in Mousefur’s nest. Briarlight twisted her body around so that her legs were at her side, making it easier for her to crawl over to Dovewing. She moved rather quickly over to Dovewing, then buried her face in the pale gray warrior’s chest.

“Briarlight,” Dovewing was startled by her sudden appearance, and also the massive bite wound on one of her legs. “You need to go see Jayfeather, your leg looks...awful.”

“I can’t stand to be anywhere near the medicine den,” Briarlight pushed herself backwards so she could look Dovewing in the eyes. “Besides-” she looked back at the bite wound, “it’s not... _ that _ bad. I’m sure I can get it treated later. There are cats that need treatment more than I do.”

“Remember that one time you got bit by a squirrel?”

“Yeah, it hurt a lot more than I expected it to.”

“The bite on your leg is worse than the squirrel bite. If you could feel it you’d head straight to Jayfeather.”

“I can’t feel it, though,” Briarlight scooted closer to Dovewing, “so it doesn’t bother me. I’ll be fine, I can handle waiting a day or two.”

“It could get infected.” Dovewing sat up. “It’s on your hind leg and, unless you keep holding it over your head, it’s going to be collecting dirt and grass whenever you move around camp. Since you can’t feel it you won’t know what it feels like when it gets infected, and it’s also-” Dovewing began speaking faster.

Briarlight cut her off. “Dovewing, please don’t worry about me.” She glanced away, “If it’ll help you calm down, I’ll go see what Jayfeather can do. Aight?”

Dovewing shook her pelt. “A-Aight? Alright...Alright.”

“Close enough,” Briarlight giggled.

Dovewing took a long nap inside the elder’s den. While she was napping, Cinderheart came in, per Jayfeather’s request, and tended to her scratches. She woke up to the slight stinging of her wounds. The feeling was not pleasant but she eventually grew accustomed to it. 

Padding outside, she felt like the entire camp had changed. Lavender had been placed around the dens and walls of camp to make it smell better, and most of the bodies had been moved out of camp to be buried. Dustpelt had begun repairing dens, starting with the warrior’s den.

He looked over to Dovewing. “Do you mind helping?” he asked. 

Hoping to get her mind off the lingering whispers in her mind, she nodded and replied, “Sure, what do I need to do?”

“Pass me the brambles on the ground so I can patch up the holes in the walls.”

Dovewing carefully picked up the scattered twigs and brambles along the ground, hoping to not get pricked by the sharp edges. One of the brambles managed to get a good scrape on her tongue. It didn’t cause her any pain, it was more of an annoyance. Dustpelt happily took the brambles and went to work filling up the empty space.

His expression changed once he had finished. He climbed down and looked to Dovewing, “Birchfall was buried not too long ago,” he mumbled, “along with your mother and sister. Just...thought you’d want to know.”

Dovewing looked down at her paws.  _ I should’ve been there to bury them.  _

“Do you want me to take you to their graves?”

Dovewing nodded, not saying a word.

Dustpelt led Dovewing out of the thorn tunnel. The tunnel was barely a tunnel with so many holes in it from the stream of Dark Forest warriors that had forced their way into camp. Some fur still clung onto the thorns, the only thing left of some of the Clan and Dark Forest warriors who lost their lives in the battle.

The forest was quiet, almost silent. The only noise present was the crunching of the yellow and orange leaves beneath their paws and the occasional rustle caused by a fluttering bird. Not too long ago the forest was filled with bloodshed and screeching of dying cats. The mere thought of the battle gave Dovewing a headache. 

The two warriors traveled through the forest until they reached a clearing not too far from WindClan territory. They had to climb up a small slope to reach the top. Along the slope were drag marks, some stained with blood. Pawprints of the warriors who dragged the bodies up the slope were visible in the spots of moist dirt.

Sandstorm and Lionblaze were finishing burying who appeared to be Hazeltail when the two finished their short climb. Lionblaze looked to Dovewing with wide, sorrowful eyes while Sandstorm looked exhausted. 

Each grave was marked by a different type of plant to indicate who the grave belonged to. Dovewing’s family was buried near a birch tree. Birchfall and Whitewing were buried beside each other, their graves marked by birch bark and petals that looked like feathers. Ivypool’s grave had ivy strung over it. Looking at it from an angle made it look like a profile of her face.

Dovewing took a seat in front of the graves. Her tail twitched. 

Lionblaze padded over to her and wrapped his tail around her for comfort. “I-I’m sorry I couldn’t save them,” he choked. “There were too many of them...I’m sorry, Dovewing.”

“We did what we could,” Dovewing mumbled. “Can’t save them all.”

“But it wasn’t enough…”

Sandstorm and Dustpelt exchanged looks. “Lionblaze,” Sandstorm spoke up, “walk with me.”

“Sandstorm-” Lionblaze tried to object.

“Walk with me,” Sandstorm demanded. “Leave Dovewing alone, she needs some time to grieve.” She nuzzled Dustpelt before leading Lionblaze away from the clearing. Dovewing could hear her start to talk with him, but didn’t bother listening in.

“I’ll be back at camp,” Dustpelt turned and left as well.

Now alone, Dovewing was able to properly get her thoughts in order. Her parents died just out of her view along with many of her clanmates, while she had watched Ivypool fall with the rest of the survivors. Guilt bubbled up in her throat, trying to escape through her clenched jaw. She looked to Hollyleaf’s grave not too far from her parents’. 

_ Hollyleaf saved Ivypool for nothing.  _ Dovewing choked on tears.  _ I could’ve stepped in and neither Ivypool or Brambleclaw would’ve died. If I had noticed mom and dad were in trouble I would’ve been able to help one of them...I wouldn’t be so damn useless! _

The remorse for not taking action escaped her mouth in the form of a loud wail that led into intense sobbing. Her whole body shook with sorrow as she cried. The wails of dozens of other cats around the lake joined in, making her body quake even more than it already was. This time, Dovewing didn’t notice the other cries, she only cared about her own.

She wanted to stop, to remain strong, but that to her would only lead to her emotions becoming stronger too. But at the same time she was one of the surviving warriors who had the least amount of injuries, meaning her clan needed her the most. She needed to be there 

She continued to sob into her paws and the damp grass below until she was wheezing and hacking up air. She took in large deep breaths until she was back to breathing at a steady rate. Lifting herself up, she swept the entire clearing with her gaze, getting a look at every grave. Only three remained empty.

Dovewing pressed her nose to Ivypool’s grave, then to Whitewing’s, then finally to Birchfall’s before leaving the clearing. The territory felt strange to her and she had trouble navigating through it, having to resort to following Dustpelt’s tracks and scent back to camp. Either that or her buzzing mind left her confused in general, making it hard for all of her senses to function properly.

Arriving back in camp felt different than it did when she was out on patrol. It felt like every cat was watching her as she stumbled down the slope into camp. She knew they weren’t doing it to make her uncomfortable, but it still made her pelt prickle with anxiety. 

Ferncloud had come out of the medicine den, her pelt covered in cobwebs, to chat with Dustpelt near the warrior’s den. She had defended the nursery along with Brightheart. Brightheart took a deadly blow to save Ferncloud’s life from Brokenstar, who was swiftly killed by his mother Yellowfang while he was gloating. 

The speckled queen only had one kit left, Foxleap. She was clearly struggling with the loss of almost all her kits, on the verge of crying as she spoke to her mate. The cobwebs restricted her movement, but she was still able to express herself through her tail and ears, which moved along with her conversation.

Briarlight approached Dovewing when the warrior reached the bottom of the slope. Her bite had been treated and was wrapped with extra layers to prevent it from getting damaged. “I would’ve come with you if you told me,” she meowed. 

“How long did it take to treat your bite?” Dovewing walked along with Briarlight towards the empty spot between the warrior and elder’s den. “Looks like it took a while.”

“Not really. Jayfeather was quick, I mean...he sort of had to, for obvious reasons. It was treated ‘bout halfway through your nap.” 

Briarlight chose a spot under a branch connecting the two dens. She made a makeshift nest out of leaves and moss in one of the more sheltered spots. “You planning on sleeping more? Oooor..at least just laying here with me for a little bit?” She wiggled until she was in a comfortable position.

Dovewing settled down next to her clanmate. “I guess I can take another nap.”

“Good,” Briarlight looked up at the dark sky, “‘cause I don’t think I’ll be able to get a full night’s rest without you beside me.”

“Wha...What do you mean by that?” Dovewing was a little astonished.

“I mean by that-well I mean...I-I like your company, that’s all.”

“That’s it?”

“Not really, I just can’t put it into words.” She placed a paw on Dovewing’s paw. “I jus’ like being around you. You’re sorta like the sun but not in a way that burns my eyes whenever I look at it.” 

“Is that why you came into the elder’s den to see me earlier?”

Briarlight nodded. “That’s one of the reasons.” She very not-subtly nuzzled Dovewing. “Gonna be honest with you, after mentioning all that, I think I have a crush on you.”

Dovewing was frozen with shock.  _ It does make sense...She does always give me that look when I come around.  _ She pressed her head to Briarlight’s chest. She felt a lot better feeling another cat next to her, one that was warm and comforting. Briarlight was handling the situation a lot better than she was.  _ She’s so strong... _ She looked up at Briarlight’s smile. 

Briarlight licked the top of Dovewing’s head. “Maybe...Maybe things would be better if we were together, y’know?”

“Yeah,” Dovewing rasped. She put her nose to Briarlight’s cheek, “I feel a lot better when you’re around. It’s just...instinct. You calm me down just by your presence.” She yawned. “Guess you’re just that powerful. You should be the one blessed by StarClan.”

“I’m already blessed by StarClan by...still being here,” Briarlight’s voice faded away. She returned after clearing her throat with, “How about a nap?”

Dovewing scooted closer to Briarlight. “I’d love a nice long one to have me prepared for tomorrow.” Unconsciously, she intertwined her tail with Briarlight’s. Just as she shut her eyes, a thought snapped into her head. “OH! I-I’m..Uh, I’m sorry about worrying about you, uh, too much.”

Briarlight blinked. “Wh-oh, about the bite? It’s nothing. It was as bad as you said it was, I shouldn’t have ignored it. Jayfeather said it was pretty bad so thanks for pointing it out.” She batted at Dovewing’s face. “Now let’s get some rest. We need to get  _ some _ sleep.”

Dovewing chuckled nervously. “Y-Yeah, sleep.”

Briarlight was asleep in no time at all while Dovewing was wide awake. A deafening silence fell over the camp as all the cats in the medicine den went quiet or fell asleep. Sandstorm and Lionblaze entered the camp, breaking the silence for just a moment before they too went to their nests for sleep. 

Occasionally Briarlight would move one of her paws closer to Dovewing or roll her head over to Dovewing’s side, which gave Dovewing some comfort. When Briarlight would shift in the opposite direction, a chill would run up Dovewing’s spine, like she was suddenly back in the elder’s den sleeping in Mousefur’s nest.

She buried her muzzle in her paws as her ears went wild once more, swiveling around to gather every single sound they could; an owl letting out a soft hoot, a mouse going out for a late night snack, leaves swirling in the wind, she could hear everything. These sounds were much more relaxing than the screeching of terrified cats she heard a few hours prior, but they still prevented her from falling asleep.

_ Please just let me fall asleep.  _ She forcefully pinned her ears to her head using her paws.  _ What use are my powers now? The Dark Forest has been slain, what are they needed for now? _

She opened an eye to look at Briarlight. The dark brown molly slept peacefully, her chubby cheeks lifted by a bright smile.

_ Does it involve her? Is she in danger? No...she can’t be.  _

The sounds of the forest slowly crept up in volume as Dovewing pondered everything that could go wrong in the next few days. Rogues, a badger attack, a stray dog...anything that could harm ThunderClan or Briarlight specifically. No matter how hard she tried to focus on sweet sounds, like the sound of water rushing over rocks or the fluttering of a robin heading from one branch to another, her mind would head back to the graphic thoughts of death and violence.

She debated trying to catch a glimpse of what was happening in another Clan, the lesser of two evils in that situation. However she backed out of that idea when considering the fact that not all the Clans responded the same to the battle. She had no clue what happened in the other camps because she didn’t dare to check on them, and at that moment she had no intention of.

Her battle between her strengthened power of hearing and her mind went on for a while until she finally managed to shut up the morbid ideas. The inside of her mind went silent just like the outside world. In her vision and mind she could see a white light. She felt warmth, whether it be from the coming dream or from Briarlight shifting closer once more.

_ Finally... _ She thought as she drifted off with a soft exhale of relief. 


	3. Chapter Two

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Hollowflight recovers after the battle, and hears his clanmates' strong opinions about the former Dark Forest trainees in camp.

Hollowflight opened his eyes to the soft pitter-patter of a morning storm. Rain dripped down from the leaves of the large tree sheltering the medicine den. He shook his face to fling off the few drops that had landed on him. 

Willowshine hopped over one of the many large roots to reach the warrior. She set down some long stalks nearby a resting Robinwing. She looked up at Hollowflight, pleased he was awake.

“You’re free to go,” she mewed, “your wounds are treated. Try and stay in camp to avoid getting the cobwebs dirty.” 

Hollowflight forced a smile and replied, “Thank you.”

He exited the den, feeling the rain pounding on his back as soon as he exited the den. Minnowtail, a former Dark Forest trainee like him, was lying outside the den waiting for him. She opened one eye when she heard him exit, then both when he turned to look at her.

“I overheard Reedwhisker and Willowshine talking early this morning,” she whispered. “Willowshine’s planning on heading over to the other Clans to see how they’re doing.”

“Why’s that important?” Hollowflight quietly asked.

“That’s not important, really...just wanted to tell some cat the knowledge I’ve obtained.” She straightened herself up. “What I learned that’s important is that if our clanmates think we’re traitors, then Reedwhisker may exile us.”

Hollowflight’s heart skipped a beat.  _ Reedwhisker wouldn’t do that, would he?  _ “B-But he has to know we didn’t side with the Dark Forest! He saw us fighting, didn’t he?”

Minnowtail shook her head, “Judging by what he said, he didn’t see us at all. There were too many cats flying around. We just have to hope Icewing will convince them.” She stood, and walked away.

“Minnowtail, where are you going?” 

“Haven’t eaten anything in a long while, so I’m going to do some hunting. Hopefully the fish weren’t scared off by the battle so I can get a large one.” She hopped into a few puddles forming in the dips of the silt before she left camp.

Minnowtail’s response woke a few cats up, mainly the cats in the medicine den behind Hollowflight. A sleepy Robinwing and an agitated Mossyfoot stuck their heads out of the den to investigate. Robinwing looked to Hollowflight, flashed him a brief smile, then went back into the medicine den to continue getting treated. Mossyfoot, on the other paw, glared at Hollowflight for a long while. When he began to bristle with fear, and when Willowshine called her back in, she retreated back into the den.

_ Mossyfoot’s never going to leave me alone, is she?  _ He sighed and plopped down, receiving a soft splash of the moist ground.  _ I tried to save Troutstream...but she isn’t going to believe me.  _ He looked across camp.  _ Neither is Rushtail. _

Rushtail was quietly chatting with Mallownose, occasionally peeping over at Hollowflight. The light brown tabby didn’t seem to care that Hollowflight was watching him, he continued to look over even when the two locked eyes. 

Minnowtail was virtually dragged back into camp by Graymist and Reedwhisker not too long after she left. In her mouth was a flopping perch, which had begun to slip out of her mouth when she reached the camp entrance. Cats stared at Minnowtail with disgust and at Reedwhisker with confusion.

The perch fell to the ground, dead. “I was just doing some fishing,” Minnowtail’s voice was calm as she defended herself. “The fresh-kill pile is nonexistent.”

“She was planning on eating only for herself!” Mossyfoot hissed from the medicine den.

“I would love to be able to eat an entire perch, but alas, I cannot. I was and still am planning on sharing it with another cat or few cats.” She licked a paw then ran it over her head for effect. “I would’ve caught more if I wasn’t dragged back here; there was a good amount of fish in the river I-”

Graymist hooked Minnowtail’s ear with her claw. “You went against Reedwhisker’s orders, don’t try and ask innocent.”

“What orders? If he gave any then I was asleep for them. Rain calms the mind, y’know?” 

Reedwhisker cleared his throat. “No cats who trained in the Place of No Stars are allowed to leave camp, period.”

Minnowtail huffed and looked down at the perch. Its dead eyes stared back up at her. “So nobody’s going to eat the perch? Is it-”

The black tom cut her off with a hiss and a snap at her nose. “Are you even listening? You think we’re going to let you off the claw just because you caught a fish? You trained with the cats who killed your leader and own kin and-”

“Pebblefoot’s dead?”

Minnowtail’s smug face turned to pure horror within seconds. Those who were bristling at her responses let their hairs flatten to their skin. Hollowflight was equally surprised as Minnowtail was. He was doing fine when Hollowflight was shoved into the medicine den.

“When did he die?” Minnowtail looked to Reedwhisker, then to Graymist. “Why aren’t you responding? Answer me! When did he die!?” Her calm demeanor was lost in the dark clouds of anger and sadness that swirled around her. 

She staggered forward, ears pinned back and tail bristling in the air.  _ Why isn’t anyone comforting her? I can’t do anything...but I-no...Can I do something for her?  _ Hollowflight leaned forward, wishing to help her, but decided against it when cats began to look to him. 

Reedwhisker cautiously approached Minnowtail. He went to nuzzle her only to get scratched in the face. Hollowflight stiffened. Minnowtail hissed, arching her back. She took one quick glimpse of every cat in camp before pushing past Graymist to escape camp. Cats were hissing and yowling after her, screeching a variety of insults.

No blood was drawn but Reedwhisker seemed to be in a decent amount of pain from the scratch. Minnowtail was a rather muscular cat, so it was no surprise that she could do that much damage. The deputy wiped his cheek with a paw, then turned to Hollowflight. His slender tail raised when the two toms locked eyes. Hollowflight felt a chill run through his entire body.

Reedwhisker was demanding an answer.

Hollowflight’s voice was caught in his throat. Too many thoughts and ideas of what to say were clogging his mind making it impossible to come up with a coherent sentence. Under Thistleclaw’s training he learned how to be more of a smoothtalker, but after the battle had finished he began forcing himself to forget what he learned from the vile tom. The tiny bits of information he retained were drowned out by panic.

“Do you know something we don’t?” Reedwhisker’s voice was laced with venom. He was usually laid back and easy-going, so his anger came as a surprise to Hollowflight and to every other cat in camp. “Look at me Hollowflight, look at me,” he snapped.

“I-I don’t know anything, I swear!” Hollowflight felt backed into a corner. He couldn’t help but stand, to get rid of some of the energy coursing through his veins. Instinct told him to flee or lash out like Minnowtail had, but his body stayed still. “Reedwhisker I-I...I don’t know!”

Thistleclaw’s words began to fill Hollowflight’s mind.  _ Stand up for yourself, Hollowpaw. Nobody will take you seriously if you quiver like a kit whenever they raise their voice. Stand tall, fearless, like a true warrior!  _ He tried to shake them out but they kept returning like mosquitos. 

Reedwhisker began to approach Hollowflight. His pelt shone in the rain. It was as though StarClan approved of the deputy’s actions; they wanted Hollowflight to pay for what he hadn’t done.

_ Don’t let any cat talk down to you! You’re stronger than them! They may be able to talk-the-talk, but if you get a good blow on their face they’ll go packing like a scared puppy. _

Hollowflight took a few steps back, getting closer and closer to the walls of the medicine den. Tiny twigs stabbed at his hind legs and back, making him even more uncomfortable. He closed his eyes, waiting for the deputy to scold him or interrogate him for information he didn’t have.

“Leave him alone!”

Icewing hopped in front of Hollowflight, her tail lashing in his face. She looked back at the brown tabby with a look of concern, the look only a concerned queen could pull off.

“He was only an apprentice when he started training in the Dark Forest, he didn’t know better,” she meowed, “He’s not like them, none of us are. We didn’t train in that horrible place because we wanted to kill our clanmates, we wanted to be better for them.” She sighed, “We know what we did was wrong, we’ve lost as much as you have.”

She turned around and rubbed her cheek against his. “Are you alright?” she mewed softly. Her green eyes were as comforting as the nursery.

He nodded and stepped away from the medicine den. His whole body was trembling.

Icewing continued, “I trained in the Dark Forest to become stronger for my kits and for RiverClan. I saw myself as weak compared to the other queens, too soft to defend my Clan in need.” She looked down to her paw, “You’ll never understand how it felt watching my son die in front of me due to my own ignorance to the true plans of the Dark Forest. You’ll never,  _ never _ , understand how it feels for the other trainees who are still alive.”

“What about Minnowtail?” Mossyfoot hissed. “How do we know she wasn’t plotting against the Clans like the Dark Forest was? You can’t read other cats’ minds.”

Icewing replied as soon as Mossyfoot finished, “Because I grew up with her. I’m only a couple moons older than her, after all. She’s a good cat, she always has been. Even when she was training with Shredtail she was still herself, cheerful, not willing to take any dung from other cats.”

Icewing’s mate, Mintfur, spoke up. “You were her apprentice, you should know what she’s like.”

Reedwhisker was more than impressed by Icewing’s words. He dipped his head. “I apologize, I should’ve known not to judge you so harshly.” He looked to Hollowflight. His gaze was calm like it was every day before. “We need every cat in RiverClan to be happy and healthy if we want to survive the coming Leafbare and the following moons.”

From the nursery came Lizardkit and Perchkit. The two kits were unaware of the situation outside as they were too busy sleeping. The first thing they noticed was the perch lying by the camp entrance. 

Perchkit looked up at Graymist. She mewed, “Can we have this fish?”

Lizardkit peeped, “It’s a perch. They’re tasty.”

Graymist purred, “Of course you can have it. You two must be hungry, after all.”

“Thanks!” Perchkit and Lizardkit worked together to drag the fish back to the nursery.

The kits’ joy seemed to calm tensions in camp. Cats forgot about Minnowtail scratching Reedwhisker’s face to focus on the kits tripping over their paws as they struggled to bring the heavy fish to the nursery. Duskfur came out of the nursery to assist them, a tired smile plastered on her face.

“Just because Icewing gave a good speech doesn’t mean you’re innocent,” Mossyfoot whispered to Hollowflight. “You let Troutstream die-”

“I couldn’t help her,” Hollowflight’s voice cracked, “I-I’m...I’m sorry.”

Mossyfoot snapped her mouth shut, looked around, then returned to her nest in the medicine den. He saw her through the sedge and reeds bristling with anger. Robinwing scooted away from her. 

Reedwhisker jumped onto the Slickstone, using his unsheathed claws to keep himself steady. The stone had become extra slippery due to the downpour and from most of the moss being shredded from the battle.

“Cats of RiverClan!” He yowled, “Those who have formerly trained in the Place of No Stars will be permitted to stay in RiverClan as RiverClan cats. We need every cat working together if we want to see the next Newleaf. Fighting between us will solve nothing.”

“You’re just letting them get away with what they did!?” Rushtail stood. “Icewing doesn’t speak for all of them. What if Minnowtail’s plotting with another trainee?”

“Yeah!” Mallownose agreed.

“She’s probably just going to take a dip in the river,” Icewing retorted, “she isn’t plotting with another trainee, there’s no way she is.”

“How do you-” Mallownose shut himself up, realizing that she had already explained how she knows Minnowtail so well. “B-But what if she’s…” He shook his head and retreated back to his resting spot to Rushtail’s dismay.

Reedwhisker flicked his tail. “My decision is final and no amount of insults and spitting will get me to change my mind. If Minnowtail does not return by the time the rain ends then a patrol will be sent out to look for her.”

“That’s a waste of cats,” Dapplenose objected, “if she doesn’t return then it’s better to just continue on without her.”

Her apprentice, Heronpaw nodded in agreement. He looked proud to be supporting his mentor.

“Minnowtail is a valuable warrior. Though...she scratched my face, she is still important to RiverClan and we need her strength to move forward. She knows what’s right and will return when she’s ready.” He wiped some raindrops from his whiskers. “Now I have another announcement. I will be heading to the Moonpool to get my nine lives this evening. I already have a cat in mind for who will be RiverClan’s next deputy.”

He looked to Graymist as soon as he finished ‘deputy’. “Graymist, I believe you’re the perfect candidate for deputy. Do you accept the position?”

Graymist sat in silence out of shock. She cleared her throat then responded with a clear, “Yes, I accept.” She bowed, “I will serve RiverClan to the best of my ability.”

RiverClan cats chanted, “Graymist! Graymist!”

Icewing joined in, and Hollowflight followed when he was able to find his voice.

When the chanting died down, Reedwhisker shouted, “RiverClan will remain as long as the river flows and the clouds cry!”

The rain stopped pouring shortly after sunhigh. Minnowtail returned to camp, her fur a bit of a mess. Despite her messy appearance, she had calmed down and was able to speak at a regular volume. Reedwhisker issued an apology towards her, which she accepted with a brisk nod. He also explained that her brother Pebblefoot had died of his wounds while she was napping. 

Willowshine announced that she was heading to ShadowClan to see how they were doing. Cats wished her well before she departed, carrying a large stash of herbs with her. 

Everything in camp was surprisingly peaceful. It was as though no battle had happened the previous day. Hollowflight only remembered what had happened when he went into the medicine den to reapply some cobwebs. Willowshine had shown the injured cats how to apply cobwebs and what to use for poultices before she left.

Mossyfoot ‘greeted’ Hollowflight by snapping at his paws. 

“Can you just leave me alone?” Hollowflight begged as he grabbed a wad of cobwebs. “I’m sick and tired of you constantly harassing me.”

“You deserve it,” Mossyfoot explained, “you worked with the-”

Robinwing sat up, “Can you please shut up?”

Curlpaw looked over the tortoiseshell tom’s shoulder. “What’s going on? Is there a fight?” she mewed.

Robinwing shook his head, “Everything’s fine, get some rest.”

“I swear I heard some cat raise their voice…” Curlpaw mumbled before flopping back down. 

Mossyfoot stood, lifting her wrapped up leg. Hollowflight winced. “You saw my wounds, stop acting surprised,” she spat. She was missing one of her front paws. “Stop staring at me, you look like a dead fish with those stupid eyes.”

“I-I didn’t know you were missing, uh, a paw,” Hollowflight mumbled.

She growled and went to exit the den. She leaned forward with her injured leg as though she still had her paw. A hiss of pain rose from her throat as her wound made contact with the moist sand and her whole body fell forward due to the lack of support. Robinwing stood up and went to help her out. She pushed him away with one of her hind legs, causing her to fall onto her side.

Curlpaw looked over again. “Is she alright?” the apprentice peeped.

“I’m fine,” Mossyfoot spat, “I don’t need help, I’ll be fine on my own.”

“You can’t walk properly, you do need help,” Robinwing mewed. “Lean on me-”

“I don’t need help!” Mossyfoot pushed herself up and began slowly wobbling away. “See? I’m fine, I can walk perfectly-OOF!” She tripped on nothing and fell forward once more. “Foxdung!” she spat. She used her remaining front paw and the stump of her other leg to push herself up. “I’m fine...I’m fine.”

Robinwing looked to Hollowflight with a frown, then went after her. Hollowflight didn’t say anything and instead focused on reapplying his cobwebs. The wounds he had that needed to be dressed were on his back and hind limbs. He was not the most flexible cat, so it was a rather tedious task to get even a few strings of cobweb onto one of his wounds.

Eventually he had most of his wounds covered so he left the den to return to lounging with Minnowtail. The dappled warrior was sunning herself near one of the tiny streams flowing through camp. She was making slow progress on fixing up her tangled pelt. 

Hollowflight laid down beside Minnowtail. “Uh, Minnowtail?” The molly looked up with a ‘mrrow’. “Is it, uh, bad that I feel sort of sorry for Mossyfoot?”

She rolled over so she was right beside the tabby. “No, it’s not bad, it just means you aren’t a terrible cat.” She watched Mossyfoot struggle to walk. Robinwing and Rushtail were at her side, begging her to at least sit down. “Any cat with a heart would feel sorry for her. As much of a pain in the tail she is, it must be horrible to have to lose a paw.”

Hollowflight sighed and rested his head on his paws. He shut his eyes and took in a deep breath of the air that still smelled of fresh rain and wind.  _ I’m a good cat,  _ he told himself.  _ Icewing defended me and some of my clanmates enjoy being around me...I have to be a good cat. _

He opened his eyes and looked to Minnowtail again. “How are you so calm?”

Minnowtail flicked an ear, “Hmm? Why am I so calm?”

“Yeah.”

“I just...am. My mind sort of filters out all the tough-talk cats spit at me which leaves me ample time to just relax...that is until...y’know.” She looked up at the sky, then back to Hollowflight. “Uh, yeah, I just don’t pay mind to what cats have to say. If you train yourself enough then you’ll eventually be able to be a great smoothtalker,” she smirked then returned to sunbathing.

_ Just don’t pay mind to what cats have to say... _ Hollowflight smiled.  _ That doesn’t seem too hard! _

“Hollowflight!” Graymist called. “You’re coming on a hunting patrol with Mintfur and I, hurry up!”

Hollowflight had never been so thrilled to go on a hunting patrol-well, after he became a warrior, at least. “Coming!” He bounded over to the camp entrance, almost bowling Mintfur over. “S-Sorry about, uh, that…”

Graymist slowly blinked. “It’s fine,” she mewed, “let’s just get going.”

Hollowflight looked back and flashed a smile at Minnowtail before heading out into RiverClan territory.


	4. Chapter Three

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Sunstrike heads to the meeting that decides her fate.

Sunstrike had never felt so claustrophobic in her life. She had been stuffed into a den with the other Dark Forest trainees: Harespring, Larkpaw, Furzepelt, and Breezepelt. Harespring was daydreaming, Larkpaw was shivering, Furzepelt clawed cats into the dirt, and Breezepelt looked ready to kill both of them. Sunstrike tried to distract her anxious mind with thoughts of her love, but that only made her anxiety worse. WindClan hadn’t heard from the other Clans in a long while, and therefore Sunstrike didn’t know who was alive or not.

Onestar had shoved all the trainees together into a small den he carved out himself. The most able-bodied warriors guarded the den while he made plans to fix WindClan camp and get everything running again. Sunstrike heard who had fallen when Onestar called their names. Hootpaw, Ashfoot, Owlwhisker, Gorsetail, Weaselfur, Thistleheart, Heathertail, Emberfoot, and Webfoot had all perished in the battle. Sunstrike offered to help bury Emberfoot, her mentor, but was shoved back into the den by Leaftail, the most vicious of the assigned guards. 

It had been two days since the end of the battle and both days Sunstrike spent in the den. The only cat she felt belonged in the den was Breezepelt. According to Crowfeather, he attempted to kill Lionblaze, his half-brother. Sunstrike felt her stomach churn whenever she glanced at the tom. 

Leaftail looked back into the den, and called, “All of you, out.”

Harespring let out a sigh of relief. “Finally,” he murmured.

Leaftail and the other guard, Whiskernose, moved out of the way to allow the cats to exit. Harespring led Larkpaw out, Furzepelt followed with her head high, Sunstrike trailed them, and Breezepelt waited far too long to even think about leaving. Whiskernose had to drag the stubborn tom out of the den. 

The camp looked completely different. The nursery and medicine den were fixed up with new gorse and large branches from trees near the ThunderClan border, making the dens a bit more colorful with the gorse having flowered. The elder’s den had been made a bit larger and the slope down had been made less steep, making it easier for the old Tornear to get in and out.

Onestar sat on the Tallrock, Crowfeather not too far.  _ Has Crowfeather been named deputy?  _ The dark gray tom sat tall and proud, so she assumed so. 

“You four,” Onestar’s voice echoed, “will be coming with Kestrelflight and I to a meeting with the three other Clans tonight. We will decide what to do with you and the other trainees.”

“It’s barely sunhigh, what will we do until then?” Harespring asked sheepishly.

“What do you think?” Crowfeather meowed.

Sunstrike stepped up to be in view of the leader and deputy. “You’re not going to put us back in that cramped den, are you? You’re wasting our time and our energy that can be put to helping the Clan.”

Onestar’s tail flicked back and forth. “We’re keeping you in that den because you cannot be trusted. You sided with the Dark Forest and therefore are traitors. You’re lucky to be alive right now,” he spat.

“Breezepelt was the only cat who fought for the Dark Forest!” Sunstrike retorted. “Harespring, Larkpaw, and I fought for WindClan.” Sunstrike looked around at the cats observing their argument. They were barely able to keep their eyes open. 

“The Clan’s tired,” Harespring mewed, “why don’t we do some of the work for them?”

“We don’t need your help,” Leaftail spat, “we’re doing fine on our own. The moment we turn our backs on you we’re going to be murdered as part of your plan!”

“Yeah!” Whiskernose agreed.

Onestar nodded. “We’re doing perfectly fine without you. After all, it barely took two days for us to rebuild and get back on our paws. Whiskernose, Leaftail, put them back in the den.”

The two warriors obeyed the WindClan leader and circled around the former Dark Forest trainees like a herding dog around cattle. Sunstrike wanted to claw off Leaftail’s whiskers, but she knew she’d get killed by it. Even Boulderfur, Breezepelt’s loyal apprentice who shared the older warrior’s ambition and violent behavior, displayed his disgust towards the trainees by baring his teeth.

Furzepelt hissed to Onestar before being forced into the den, “You’ll regret treating us like crowfood!”

The den felt even smaller now that the trainees had been given fresh air. Larkpaw looked the most hopeful when she was allowed out of the den, being the youngest out of them. Now that she had been forced back into the den, she was crushed. Her sister Featherpaw and her mother Sedgewhisker made no attempt to defend her, and her tucked tail and spiked up pelt showed it all. Harespring attempted to comfort her but she drew away, eyes wide with a low growl-like sound rumbling in the back of her throat.

Sunstrike turned to Breezepelt. She spat in his face, “We wouldn’t be in this situation if it weren’t for you.”

“Like you’re innocent,” Breezepelt hissed.

“More innocent than  _ you.  _ Last time I checked, I haven’t tried to kill _ any  _ cats. How many cats have you tried to kill recently?”

“You trained in the Dark Forest with Antpelt and I, what-”

Harespring put himself between the two. “Stop fighting, you’re scaring Larkpaw even more. It also isn’t helping us since the whole Clan sees us as monsters. Let’s try and keep fighting to a minimum and maybe we’ll come out of this alive, alright?” He forced a smile.

Breezepelt let out a gravely meow, “Like being friendly is going to get us anywhere.”

Night came creeped in at a snail’s pace. Every second was agonizing. Sunstrike faded in and out of consciousness during the hours of waiting for something to happen. Her stomach groaned with hunger, as the small sparrow dispersed amongst the small group barely filled her stomach.

When the sky began to darken, the tortoiseshell felt her whole body shiver with delight. Even if at the meeting the leaders decide to get rid of them, at least they would be able to see the sky above them before they were taken to StarClan...or possibly the Dark Forest.

Leaftail poked his head into the den. His normally vibrant dark ginger coat looked dull in the darkness. “Get up,” he demanded, “it’s time for the meeting. Don’t try and pull anything on the way there.”

Sunstrike and Harestrike were the only ones who seemed to be excited to leave the den. Furzepelt lagged behind the older warriors. She still kept her rage on her face, baring her teeth at the guards with no fear. Breezepelt had to be dragged out by Leaftail  _ and  _ Whiskernose, and Larkpaw had to be convinced to come outside by Harestrike. The apprentice looked like a lanky hedgehog.

Onestar leaped off the Tallrock, his previous resting spot, to lead the cats out of camp. Crowfeather joined his side swiftly, though he slowed down to give a cold glare to his son, who graciously returned the look. Whiskernose and Leaftail flanked the group. 

Kestrelflight hopped over just before the group was leaving. Through the thin layer of fur on his body were heavy bags under his eyes. The fur around his paws was stained a deep brown; the stains were also present on his upper legs and in a few patches along his tail. He looked just as thrilled as Breezepelt to be going to the meeting.

“Why are extra cats coming?” he asked Onestar.

“Protection,” Onestar replied, “can’t have my back turned on them.”

Harespring pressed against Larkpaw, bristling at Onestar’s remark.

“W-Well...uh, alright then.”

Onestar looked to the hills ahead. “Alright, let’s go. The other Clans must already be there.”

The night was beginning to grow louder once more. Crickets sang their songs as the cats walked past, some stopping on tall blades of grass to watch each cat’s expression before returning to their chorus. Owls watched from the distance, their bright yellow eyes illuminated by the moonlight. They stretched their wings and tapped their talons against the bark of the trees they rested in. They were just as restless as Sunstrike.

She watched them silently soar back to the small patch of woods in RiverClan territory.  _ Must have spotted a mouse... _ She thought.  _ Wish I could go hunting with them. Hopefully this goes well and I’ll be able get myself a juicy rabbit tomorrow morning...or maybe tonight. _

Leaftail snapped at her tail, “Keep moving, we don’t have time for stargazing.”

“I wasn’t stargazing,” Sunstrike retorted. 

“Then what were you doing?”

Sunstrike didn’t respond.

Leaftail scoffed, “Rabbitbrained kit.”

Horseplace was a rather comforting sight as it seemed to be in a normal state. Hay was scattered around the small field the horses roamed in, moths fluttered around the lights set up by twolegs by their dens, everything was as it was supposed to be. Behind the wooden gates she could see horses sleeping, their long muscular legs tucked under them like a cat’s. Some were standing, either getting in a quick nap or to have a quick snack from one of the hanging containers. 

As they approached the lake, the island came into sight. It was shrouded in mist, which was an unsettling sight. Even on a foggy night, StarClan would not allow it to creep over the lake and cover the island. Instead of being able to tell the difference between each tree and bush, they all blended together into a dark shadow.

Cats jumped up onto the log and entered the island. Their features were hidden like the island’s, so they looked more like shadows than living cats. 

As the WindClan cats approached the island, Sunstrike could smell the other former Dark Forest trainees. She hated how she could recognize each one, even though they were mixed with their clanmates. Their hushed whispers were rather loud, meaning there was a good amount of trainees remaining after the battle. 

Feeling the log underneath her paws made shivers run up her spine. She always hated how it felt, but now it felt even worse than it usually did. She had to dig her claws into the damp bark to prevent herself from slipping. If she fell, nobody was going to help her. Her pelt prickled with every creak and peep the log made until she made it to land. 

She now had a clear view of who was there. She locked eyes with a RiverClan trainee, a gray molly. Her eyes were calm, unlike the tom beside her. A ThunderClan tom nearby caught her attention and she turned away from Sunstrike.

_ Are those two still together?  _ The tortoiseshell thought as she took a seat next to Harestrike.  _ Even if they aren’t, I have no chance with her.  _

“We outnumber them, we could easily fight them off if they decide to kill us,” Furzepelt whispered to her. “Then we could escape and find-”

“Not a good idea to suggest that before our trial,” Sunstrike winced, noticing Whiskernose bristle out of the corner of her eye.

Furzepelt shrugged, “Just a suggestion.”

“Is every cat here?” the massive Blackstar asked. “Including the prophecy cats?” He looked over to a fluffy gray tabby.

She nodded, “Everybody’s here...so I guess we should begin.”

“How should we execute this?” The recently named Reedstar asked. 

“We should see what the prophecy cats have to say first,” Blackstar replied. “After all, StarClan gifted them powers for a reason.”

Onestar shook his head, “ThunderClan isn’t always right, we can’t trust them with every decision.”

“Maybe you should trust us for once,” Jayfeather, ThunderClan’s medicine cat, hissed. “You’re too paranoid for your own good, so it’s not like we can trust you with a logical decision. You don’t even trust your own authority, since you brought extra cats with you.”

Leaftail and Whiskernose stood and hissed at the slender gray tabby. The blind tom smirked, amused by their response. 

After a long silence, Onestar sighed, “Fine, we’ll listen to the prophecy cats.” He sat down with an annoyed snort, large ears flattened against his skull.

“So, what do you have to say?” Blackstar asked.

The three cats stiffened and exchanged glances. Jayfeather seemed annoyed by some cat’s presence, the golden tabby Sunstrike remembers as Lionblaze looked to the gray tabby beside him for an answer, and the small gray molly at the end looked like she had just come from the battle. Her green eyes were wide and her ears were swiveling around constantly, picking up every little sound.  
“Well?”

The small gray molly spoke up. “My sister trained in the Dark forest, her name was Ivypool. She was tricked into joining the cats in the Dark Forest by Hawkfrost, and I bet most of the trainees here had similar experiences.” She looked to the gray-and-white tom beside her. 

The tom didn’t speak until she nodded, “I-I started training in the Dark Forest because I didn’t feel like I was contributing to the Clan as much as I should’ve, compared to my siblings. I was born out of the Clans so I didn’t know who Tigerstar and Brokenstar were, I just thought they were cats made to scare us as kits. I figured out what they truly were the day of the battle.”

He hung his head, “I wish I never trained with them. They killed my sister…”

Blackstar narrowed his eyes, “Any other trainee want to speak?” He looked to the molly beside him, “Applefur, do you have something to say?” He ended his sentence with a low hiss.

Applefur shifted uncomfortably, “I started training there for the same reason; I wanted to be better for ShadowClan.”

“You didn’t recognize Brokenstar? He didn’t die too long ago, and your mother knew him, so why would you listen to him?” 

Onestar nodded, “You’re lying, aren’t you?”

“No, I’m not!” Applefur cried. “I didn’t see Brokenstar until a few days before the battle. I was mortified. I couldn’t just leave or he’d kill me! I didn’t want to be stuck in that horrible place with him.”

A white RiverClan molly stepped forward, “Blackstar, she’s a good cat. I trained with her personally and though she fought with unsheathed claws, she wasn’t aiming to hurt me. She would apologize if she scratched me and make sure I was fine.”

Blackstar sighed, “If what you say is true...then Applefur will be allowed to stay in ShadowClan.”

“They could be lying!” Onestar hissed. “We can’t trust them.”

Reedstar stood, “Icewing lost her sons in the battle, she has no reason to lie. She is an honorable cat who knows what’s right. If she trusts Applefur, then so should we.”

The gray molly from ThunderClan added, “My father knew Applefur from the great journey. He told me story after story about her when they were kits traveling through the mountains, and when they were apprenticed how they would stay up to chase frogs by the border. She’s a good cat, and I’m thankful she’s still alive.”

Applefur frowned, “Is Birchfall dead?”

The ThunderClan warrior nodded, “Yeah...he is. I’ll be glad to take you to visit his grave if you want me too...I’ve been there, uh, a few times.”

“Thank you, Dovewing.” 

“Is it decided then?” Reedstar asked the leaders.

“The Dark Forest trainees will be allowed to stay,” Blackstar nodded. “However, they must prove their loyalty.”

“How so?” Onestar seemed intrigued. 

Sunstrike looked to Crowfeather. The deputy was just as interested as Onestar was, mostly due to his son being one of the trainees. Sunstrike despised Breezepelt like everyone else, but she felt a bit worried he’d get all the punishment. Despite this possibility, Breezepelt didn’t seem to care. He kept his head down and eyes closed.

“Cinderheart, do you have any ideas?” Blackstar asked the ThunderClan tabby.

“It’s Cinder _ star _ now,” she corrected, “but...hmmm. Mousewhisker has already proven himself by helping his clanmates rebuild camp. Blossomfall,” she flicked her tail towards a tortoiseshell, “has done her part as well. I think the best way to prove their loyalty is to see how they have helped their clanmates so far and what they plan to do in the future.”

Lionblaze purred and nodded along to the molly’s words. 

“It’s only been a couple days since the battle, there hasn’t been a lot for them to do,” Blackstar argued. “It isn’t a reliable way to prove their loyalty.”

“Then keep watching them if you don’t think two days is enough time.”

“For how long?” Onestar popped in.

Cinderstar rolled her eyes, “As long as you need to. Watch them for a moon or two if you really believe they’re plotting against you.” She turned to Reedstar and Blackstar, “You two have anything else to add?”

Blackstar cleared his throat. “Do all former Dark Forest apprentices promise to remain loyal to their clans and the warrior code?”

“We do,” the cats said in unison, except for Breezepelt who was behind by a millisecond.

“This meeting is over, we’ve discussed all we need to.”

“What about Littlecloud?” Kestrelflight asked. “Where is he?”

“He died in the battle. Willowshine,” Blackstar flicked his tail towards the dark gray tabby, “is acting as our temporary medicine cat. Hopefully she’ll be able to start training an apprentice soon.”

Kestrelflight backed up, “Oh...alright.” He looked down at the ground.

“If that’s all,” Reedstar flicked his tail, “RiverClan will be leaving now. May StarClan light your paths.” 

The cats followed Reedstar to a patch of the island without a dense layer of shrubs. They slipped into the water and began swimming towards the shore. Sunstrike had never seen cats move so fast through the water. Their muscular legs propelled them through the water, making them look like fluffy otters.

“We’ll be taking our leave as well,” Blackstar led Applefur and Willowshine out of the clearing.

Cinderstar and her clanmates followed them silently. Dovewing hurried ahead of the cats to get to Applefur. They whispered to each other as they traveled down the large log. Being close to one another relaxed them.

“Let’s go WindClan,” Onestar hissed begrudgingly. Clearly, he was not pleased with the verdict reached by the other Clans.

While they walked down the log, Furzepelt grew closer to Sunstrike. She asked, “Do you think he’ll actually let us roam camp?”

“Maybe he will,” Sunstrike muttered, “but also...maybe he won’t. He sure doesn’t like taking orders from ThunderClan, so I doubt he’s going to be as kind compared to the other Clans.”

Furzepelt huffed, “Better swallow his pride before we leave him in the dust.”

“Could you stop implying you’re going to kill him?”

Furzepelt walked away.

_ That molly’s going to get herself exiled, or worse killed.  _ Sunstrike shivered as she watched the gray-and-white molly trot happily along the bridge, playfully nudging Harestrike along the way. She wasn’t aware of the consequences of what she was saying, or she didn’t care. Whatever was going on in her mind, it worried Sunstrike.

Furzepelt had just become a warrior along with Boulderfur before it was revealed before she was training in the Dark Forest. She, unlike Larkpaw, was lucky to get a warrior name and to keep it after Onestar shoved her into the den. With her mouth it was likely Onestar would take her warrior name away once they reached camp.

The camp was dead silent as the group arrived back at camp. Curious eyes shone through the shadows as they waited for Onestar’s announcement. The slim tabby bounded forward, using the momentum to thrust himself onto the Tallrock. He slowed down as he reached the top. Crowfeather sat down at the base of the rock.

“The Clans have come to a decision,” Onestar yowled, “the cats who once trained in the Dark Forest will be allowed to stay in WindClan. However, they will be monitored and cannot leave camp alone; they must have two cats with them at all times on the moor.”

Furzepelt looked ready to hiss an insult, but Sunstrike put her tail in the young warrior’s mouth before she could say anything stupid.

“You may all rest now,” Onestar dipped his head before leaping off.

Whispers about the freed cats made it impossible for Sunstrike to settle down in her grass nest. Unusually she enjoyed her spot near the front of camp where she could feel the cool breeze, but now it made her feel like she was in the heart of Leafbare, frigid and dying for warmth.

That was so until Swallowtail, a good friend of Sunstrike’s, came down and settled down beside her. Her voice was hoarse as she said, “Need company?”

“Honestly...yeah,” Sunstrike said under a trembling breath. 

“I’m sorry for not ’elping you out when you was put into the den. I just...uh, wasn’t in the best state to fight, y’know? Still not there, heh.”

“Fight?”

“Leaftail would ‘ave put up a fight.”

“Ah,” Sunstrike nodded. She curled up, muzzle facing Swallowtail. “Planning on sleeping here tonight? It’s a little drafty over here, probably not your type of resting spot.”

“I’ll be fine, don’t worry ‘bout it.” Swallowtail curled up in a similar position to her friend. “As long as you’s fine then I’m fine too.”

“Alrighty then...goodnight.”

“Night.”

For the first time in a moon, Sunstrike was able to drift off to sleep effortlessly.


	5. Chapter Four

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Stoatpaw adjusts to the new normal of ShadowClan after the battle

Stoatpaw woke to a sharp jab in his side. He opened his eyes to see his denmate Pouncepaw prodding him with a paw. “I don’t have training tonight, why are you waking me up?” he grumbled, shaking his pelt of his dreams.

“Blackstar’s called a meeting,” Pouncepaw snorted. “Come on, he’s going to be mad if we won’t show up.”

“I’ll be out in a moment, you go ahead. I can handle a bit of yelling.”

“And I can’t?” Pouncepaw flicked his tail in Stoatpaw’s face with a smirk then went to join the crowd of cats outside.

Stoatpaw yawned loudly, his tongue flicking some spit onto the den’s floor. He wiped his muzzle with a paw then stood to face the deep night. The moon could be seen through the thick walls of ShadowClan’s forest, meaning it had just risen over the horizon, replacing the blinding sun of the day. Most of the cats were awake and ready for the night, except for those with serious injuries from the battle, making Stoatpaw’s pelt prickle with embarrassment.

He took a seat next to Pouncepaw, who greeted him with a slap to the back. 

Blackstar looked down at the apprentices with the tiniest bit of his lip raised.  _ Great, he noticed.  _ Stoatpaw smiled at the leader, hoping it’d make up for his tardiness.

The leader began, “Cats of ShadowClan, as you know I met with the other Clans last night to decide whether or not Applefur should stay with us. We came to an agreement that she should-”

Applefur purred and dipped her head.

“Though I agreed with the other Clans, I do not believe that they’re trustworthy, especially WindClan. Onestar cannot be trusted. Therefore, if WindClan, or Onestar specifically, needs our help we will not provide any.”

“But what about the cats of WindClan?” a cat asked.

“They’re in agreement with Onestar, except for the former Dark Forest apprentices. I don’t doubt that Onestar has treated them horribly the past few days. WindClan sits idly by and lets Onestar do whatever he wants.”

Meows of agreement sprung up into the air.

“No ShadowClan cat will be allowed to visit WindClan at all until Onestar proves himself to be a better leader. Any cat who tries to defy my orders will be punished accordingly.”

“Now that I have gotten that out of the way, I have important ceremonies to perform. Two kits have reached the age of six moons and it’s time they’re apprenticed.” The old tom beamed with pride. “Sparrowkit and Dewkit, please step forward.”

The kits, who looked more like small warriors, gladly took a few steps forward to the base of the tree. Their mother, Kinkfur, was purring loudly nearby, her eyes glowing with glee. She had been allowed to come out of the medicine den to watch her kits become apprentices.

“Sparrowkit, do you promise to listen to your assigned mentor and learn the ways of the warrior code and ShadowClan? And do you promise to uphold the code, even at the cost of your life?”

“I do!” The pale brown tabby nodded.

“Then from this day forward, until you receive your warrior name, you will be known as Sparrowpaw.” He turned his attention from Sparrowpaw to one of the warriors in the front row. “Smokefoot, you were an excellent mentor to Owlclaw, so I believe you will be just as great of a mentor to Sparrowpaw.”

Smokefoot stood and approached Sparrowpaw. The newly named apprentice blinked at the warrior, trembling with delight. They touched noses.

“Sparrowpaw! Sparrowpaw!” The clan chanted.

“Now Mistpaw,” the crowd fell silent, “you have decided to walk a different path.” The leader nodded to Willowshine, ShadowClan’s temporary medicine cat, “Willowshine, do you believe that Dewpaw is fit to become your apprentice?”

Willowshine nodded, “She is willing to learn the ways of a medicine cat, so I will teach her.” She hopped onto one of the large roots of the oak tree. “Dewkit, do you promise to help those in need, no matter what Clan, and to follow the medicine cat code and the laws of StarClan?”

Dewkit mewed, “I do!”

“Then by the powers of StarClan, until you are ready to receive your medicine cat name, you will be known as Dewpaw!”  
“Dewpaw! Dewpaw!” The clan cheered even louder.

“Clan dismissed!” Blackstar announced over the cheering.

Dewpaw touched Willowshine’s nose, tail wagging like a happy dog. She looked back at her brother with a bright smile on her face. He returned the look as he ran up and nuzzled her. Kinkfur joined them for a brief moment before being escorted back to the medicine den, now with her daughter helping her along with the RiverClan medicine cat.

Pouncepaw turned to Stoatpaw, “Great, we won’t get to spread our legs anymore.”

“ _ We _ ? You’re the one who decides to take up half the den. Thank StarClan there’s a new apprentice so you can finally curl up into a nice, small ball.” Stoatpaw playfully batted at Pouncepaw’s ear, “Or maybe I could work with Sparrowpaw to-”

“Stoatpaw!”

_ Great. _

Scorchfur stormed over to the apprentice. “Tawnypelt wants you and Pouncepaw at the Needlenest for training. They’ll be leaving soon.”

“I could’ve told them myself,” Tawnypelt sighed from the entrance, “but I guess you’re a good messenger…”

Scorchfur bared his fangs then trotted off towards his mate and kits. 

“You heard him,” Shrewfoot meowed, “let’s go.”

Pouncepaw yawned dramatically as he walked over to his mentor. He flung his head backwards, letting it hang as far as it could go. He looked like a frog being dragged back to camp. Shrewfoot rammed him with the lower half of her body to get him into a normal posture.

_ We’re almost warrior age but he still acts like the leader of the swamp.  _ Stoatpaw smiled and joined the small group. Tawnypelt gave him a friendly smile then led the group out of camp.

The surrounding tangle of conifers and small developing oak trees were covered in scratches and small bits of fur from the battle. Simply glancing at them made each cat uncomfortable. Cats were dragged out of camp into the forest to be killed quietly, but they still screeched, their cries for help drowned out by the larger battle happening in camp.

Tawnypelt, though she was smiling, held a bit of fear in her eyes. She had lost Flametail only a few moons before the battle, then ended up losing her two other kits, Dawnpelt and Tigerheart, shortly after. Her paws trembled with each step and her tail was barely keeping her balanced. Stoatpaw would offer a word of comfort, but he held it deep in his throat; he was never the best at comforting cats.

The Needlenest was a lot nicer than it sounded. Orange and green pine needles were scattered about the clearing. A small stream ran nearby. Unlike the rest of the territory, the Needlenest was a lot more open, giving apprentices and their mentors a good amount of space to train. The lack of trees around also allowed more moonlight to shine onto the clearing, making it easier to see. ShadowClan cats were well adapted to the night, but they still needed  _ some _ light to navigate.

“Tonight we’ll be working on stealth,” Tawnypelt spoke softly, “but not the basic techniques you’re used to. We’ll be dealing with more fast paced sneaking.”

“Why are we doing battle training? Shrewfoot said we’d be working on hunting when we get back to training,” Pouncepaw questioned.

Tawnypelt sighed, “I fear conflict will arise soon so it’s better we’re prepared for it than to be left open for attack.” She hopped onto a rotting log. “Shrewfoot, are you up for demonstrating?”

Shrewfoot stretched each toe on each of her black paws. “My wounds are pretty much healed at this point so I’ll be good. If they open up then I guess you’ll be up.” She leaped onto a large stack of pine needles, scattering them.

She began, “Forests have a lot of debris on their floor, shielding sticks,” she slammed her paw down and snapped a twig, “and basically anything else that can create noise, alerting the enemy. You must be careful of your surroundings.”

_ We know this from hunting prey, why is she telling us this?  _ Stoatpaw looked to Pouncepaw. The tabby looked excited; he always had the same look on his face when his mentor began speaking. 

“When slowly moving forward it’s a lot easier to spot these sorts of things, but when you’re running you’re not as focused on the floor as you are on what’s ahead of you. This can lead to you cracking every twig along the way and telling the enemy that you’re coming. They will either flee or have time to prepare.”

“What you want to do is watch the terrain around you,” she began to sprint around the clearing in a circle, barely making a sound, “to see if there’s any dips or places for sticks to hide. You need to alternate between looking at what’s ahead of you and what’s around you. It’ll take a lot of time to be able to balance everything out, so that’s why you’re learning it now. It may take up the rest of your training before your assessments if you’re both unlucky.”

“What do you mean by unlucky?” Stoatpaw mewed.

“If your paws are on the wrong way then it may be hard,” Shrewfoot joined Tawnypelt on the log. 

Tawnypelt nodded to the warrior, “Both of you line up at that end of the clearing,” she flicked her tail to the area the apprentices were standing at, “and sprint to the other end. Try and avoid as many sticks and dips as possible, and your friend.”

Stoatpaw lined up next to Pouncepaw, determination in his eyes.  _ I’ve got smaller paws than that big idiot, I’ll be fine. Reason I was named Stoatpaw after all... _ He crouched, bunching his muscles, watching the path ahead of him.

“Go!”

Stoatpaw bounded forward, a lot swifter than Pouncepaw on the start. The brown tabby was still rather speedy, for his size, but not as close to the speed Stoatpaw was at. With cautious paws, Stoatpaw went for the finish line. His perfect finish was halted as a patch of pine needles fell beneath his weight. One of his paws hooked onto the ledge behind him to stop his fall, but it ended up getting yanked down into the hole with Stoatpaw, letting out a painful pop as it released the dirt ledge.

Pouncepaw nearly fell into the pit as well, screeching to a halt just on the edge of it. He wobbled for a moment, then steadied out. “You okay?” he asked.

“I’m-” Stoatpaw spit up some dirt, “fine. I’ve taken worse falls.” 

He was fine until he tried to stand. Pain sent a shockwave through his body that put him back in the dirt.  _ I swear to StarClan- _ He looked at the source of his pain; his front paw made him wince with pain whenever he tried to tilt it even the slightest bit. The area around the paw also ached, making it almost impossible to stand on that leg.

Tawnypelt spoke through her teeth, “Forgot about this part of the Needlenest…”

Pouncepaw hopped down. “Let me help you up,” he offered.

Stoatpaw hissed in humiliation as he was lifted up by Pouncepaw. He swung on the back of the larger apprentice as he was carried up. Shrewfoot helped keep Stoatpaw steady until they reached the top of the slope. Stoatpaw slid backwards, rearing up on his hind legs before letting his good front leg fall to the ground. 

“Sure you don’t want me to carry you back?” Pouncepaw smirked.

“I’m fine with limping back, but  _ thanks for the offer _ .” Stoatpaw bared his teeth at his denmate. “Last thing I’d want to do is pollute the medicine den with your carrion scent.”

Tawnypelt briskly walked to Stoatpaw’s side, “I’ll take him back to camp, you two can continue.” She let Stoatpaw lean against her for support as they exited the needle-covered clearing.

The walk back to camp was a lot harder on three legs. Stoatpaw struggled to hop over the jagged terrain and Tawnypelt had to contort her body to prevent him from injuring himself further. Every misstep made Stoatpaw feel worse and worse; he didn’t want to spend any more time in the medicine den but, of course, when he left camp for the first time he injured himself.

_ That should’ve been easy to see... _ Stoatpaw hissed at his own stupidity. 

“Does it hurt?” Tawnypelt meowed.

“Uh, no...not really,” Stoatpaw limped ahead of her. 

“Then why were you hissing?”

“I-I uh...I was thinking, uh, about….things…” He looked away.  _ Great work Stoatpaw! You explained yourself! Now you should try and convince a frog to jump into your mouth! _

Tawnypelt purred, “It was a lot harder training in a marsh, back in the forest. Adapting to the mud and murky water was pretty hard, especially since dry forest was all I knew since I grew up in ThunderClan. Sprained my paws and legs a lot when I was an apprentice.”

“Wait, wait, wait...you’re a ThunderClan cat?”

“Not anymore, I joined ShadowClan many moons ago. Rowanclaw was one of my only friends I had, so that’s probably why I fell in love with him.” She shook her head, “Uh, anyways-Don’t be embarrassed you got injured, it happened to me all the time. You’re an apprentice, this is the age for mistakes and failures.”

“I guess so,” Stoatpaw smiled. “Thanks.”

“It’s what I’m here for. I’m lucky you’re my apprentice.”

“What, you don’t like Pouncepaw?”

“Shrewfoot’s a better mentor for him. They fit together like a beetle’s back.”

Willowshine nearly bumped into them on her way out of camp. “Oops! Sorry, didn’t see you two there.” She yawned, “So, uh, what happened to Stoatpaw?”

“Sprained his paw,” Tawnypelt explained, “took a tumble into a pit. Is it fine if he stays in the medicine den?”

“He’ll probably have to be...waiting for a while,” Willowshine gritted her teeth. “I’m heading back to RiverClan to check on cats and get some rest.” She looked to Stoatpaw, “Will you be fine with waiting until morning to get your paw properly checked out?”

“I think I can nap that long,” Stoatpaw nodded.

“Great. I’ll be off then. You two have a good night.”

Tawnypelt dipped her head, “You too! May StarClan light your path!”

Scorchfur was waiting at the entrance, resting on the boulder by the thorn tunnel, as though he knew Stoatpaw messed up.  _ He’s crazy enough to talk to birds, so maybe he heard from one of them.  _ The apprentice snorted at his own thoughts. The gray warrior arched his back at the sight of the injured apprentice. Tawnypelt shot him a deadly glare which smoothed his pelt.

The medicine den was crowded, despite being the same size as the warrior’s den. Dewpaw was in the back of the den which was shielded by a few pine branches with pine needles and vines attached to them. The molly talked to herself under her breath as she sorted herbs.

Kinkfur was at the far end of the den, watching her daughter work with a proud smile on her face. Starlingwing was next to the queen, sleeping. Half of his tail was gone, and the half that remained was covered in cobwebs and leaves. Rowanclaw was at the entrance of the den. Along his side was a long, deep scratch that was still red. He raised his head to look at Tawnypelt and Stoatpaw.

“Did you beat up another apprentice?” Rowanclaw purred, touching noses with his mate.

“No, he did it to himself,” Tawnypelt patted Stoatpaw’s back with the tip of her tail. “Sprained his paw. He’ll be staying here until Willowshine returns.”

Stoatpaw plopped down into the nest by Rowanclaw. Tawnypelt licked the top of Rowanclaw’s head before exiting the den. The apprentice sighed and batted at his tail. He wasn’t tired...yet.

“So, uh…” Stoatpaw looked over his shoulder, “how’s the scratch treating you?”

Rowanclaw’s friendly face turned into a sour one. “Like a cool, refreshing, drink of puddle water on a hot Greenleaf day,” he snarled, his head slowly dripping onto his paws like honey. 

_ Why’s he being such a toadface?  _ Stoatpaw did a quick eye roll then returned to batting at his tail. It didn’t take long for him to get bored of the same swiping motion and the predictable movements of his tail. He could only move his tail in a few ways, all of which he knew how to hit spot-on. He sighed.  _ Maybe if Rowan-toad was more friendly I could talk with him. Why does he only have to be nice to Tawnypelt? _

“Hey!”

Stoatpaw jumped.

Dewpaw giggled, “Sorry, didn’t mean to startle you. What are you doing here? Did one of your scratches open up again? Willowshine showed me how to stop one from bleeding so I could help with that.”

“Uh, I sprained my paw,” Stoatpaw displayed his motionless paw. “Don’t think you can do much to help, though.”

“Yeah, sorry, I can’t. Haven’t been able to learn too much tonight. It sucks that RiverClan cats aren’t active during the night then Willowshine would be able to teach me more.” She suddenly piped up, “Oh! I could get you some poppy seeds, so you can sleep until she comes back.”

“Yeah, I was planning on doing that.”

“I’ll get you a couple, gimme a second!”

Dewpaw appeared moments later with a leaf dangling from her jaw. She set down the leaf and let it unfurl, revealing a few small black seeds. “Just eat these and you should fall asleep soon!”

Stoatpaw nodded to her as she returned to her workspace. He lapped up the seeds, getting a good taste of the leaf while he did so. The leaf tasted like the dirt he almost swallowed at the Needlenest. 

Not too long after he ingested the poppy seeds, he felt his eyes start to droop. He purred as he laid his head down in the nest, and drifted off to sleep.

He opened his eyes to blood covering the medicine den floor. Panic set in immediately and he jumped to his paws, fur bristling and back arched. Cats laid around him, bleeding and heaving in pain. He ran out of the den, unable to handle the horrible stench of death in the den.

“What’s happening? What’s happening?” he whispered to himself, shaking his head.

Outside was not even close to better. Even more cats were running around and screeching, trying to escape the grasps of smaller cats with legs longer than a spider’s. Their pelts were shredded by the lanky cats before they were thrown to the side to die like the cats in the medicine den.

On the perch Blackstar would sit on to call meetings was a thin shadowy creature. Its legs were long like the lanky cats and they were slender like them too, but it was much larger and had the head of a rabbit. Its eyes glowed a yellow-green as it turned its head to Stoatpaw.

The fighting paused as the rabbit creature jumped off the perch, landing in front of Stoatpaw. He scurried back like a frightened beetle.

“Do not let the murky water consume ShadowClan,” its voice echoed, “or you will be stained in the blood it carries. You must meet the cat who is nested in the past with the ears for the future, the cat who carries the black sun in their throat, and the cat with the tricks of the waves in their paws. Borders mean nothing when all is at risk.”

“I can’t do this!” Stoatpaw cried. “I-I-I’m just an apprentice! I can’t even run properly, how can I save my Clan?”

“It will take time, but if you keep your head above the water you will reach the beach.” 

It touched its nose to Stoatpaw’s head.

_ Be brave. _


	6. Chapter Five

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Dovewing goes on a hunting patrol and finds...something

Dovewing was woken up by a quick jab to her eyes. She let out a surprised  _ mrrrp  _ before rising to her paws. She looked up at Blossomfall, who scowled back. 

“Come on, we’re on a hunting patrol,” the tortoiseshell meowed.

_ Since when was I on a hunting patrol?  _ Dovewing yawned and stretched her legs. She reluctantly followed Blossomfall out of the den. 

The sun had just begun sending small beams of light through the leaves of the tall trees around camp. Tiny yellow and orange dots of light began flickering in and out on the stone walls. Cats began to rise from their slumber and let the tiny dots adapt to their pelts. Injured cats still staying in the medicine den came out for the fresh morning air.

Toadstep and Sandstorm were waiting at the entrance of camp. Toadstep looked like a nervous apprentice on his first day of training, while Sandstorm looked like a tired elder going out for a stroll. Her gray hairs on her muzzle and around her eyes were more visible in the morning sun. 

Sandstorm nodded to Blossomfall as she arrived with Dovewing trailing behind her. “Let’s go,” she flicked her tail. 

The senior warrior led the patrol up the thorn tunnel leading out of camp. Her steps were slow and calculated; she was focused on the ground and not what was ahead of her. Toadstep almost bumped into her multiple times due to her sudden pausing. 

Once they reached a small clearing a good bit away from camp, Sandstorm stopped. She looked to the younger warriors, “We’ll split up then meet at the thorn tunnel at sunhigh. I’ll be going with Toadstep, Blossomfall and Dovewing you’ll be going together.” She nodded to herself, then trotted off, Toadstep right on her heels.

Anxiety prickled at Dovewing’s pelt for no apparent reason as Blosssomfall stared at her.  _ She doesn’t like me at all, why did Sandstorm put me with her?  _ Dovewing looked away from her clanmate, instead focusing on an extra tall piece of grass.  _ Does she know about Briarlight and I? Oh StarClan, that won’t make anything better… _

“Are we hunting or not?” Blossomfall nudged her. “Right now’s the perfect time for hunting squirrels and we’re wasting time standing here.”

“Oh! Uh, sorry...Let’s go.” Dovewing forced a smile.

Blossomfall rolled her eyes and trotted away into the dense undergrowth of the forest. Dovewing took in a deep breath and followed the tortoiseshell down the moss-covered path. Her fluffy tail was tucked between her legs as she walked and she kept her gaze low along with her twitching ears. 

Despite her ears constantly moving, it felt like she was deaf. Her thoughts made it hard for her to focus on her surroundings, and therefore made it nearly impossible to use her powers properly. Blossomfall’s tail swishing in front of her, ticking her nose, didn’t help with concentrating.

_ I was able to hunt like this perfectly fine when I was an apprentice...why can’t I do it now? _

Dovewing muzzle was slammed right into Blossomfall’s raised tail. The warrior looked over her shoulder and glared at Dovewing. Backing away, Dovewing couldn’t keep her eyes off Blossomfall’s. There was an emotion she couldn’t read-not like she was good at reading emotions in the first place-and it made her feel worse.

“There’s a squirrel by that tree’s roots,” she motioned with a paw over to an ancient moss-covered tree. “It’s collecting nuts, we have time to circle it. I’ll stay here, you go around.”

Dovewing nodded and silently slipped away. Her fluffy paws kept her quiet as she snuck around the back. Slowly, her hearing rolled back in, allowing her to hear the tiniest movements made by the squirrel, as well as its tiny heartbeat.  _ Don’t let it distract you….Just focus on the squirrel, just focus on hunting with Blossomfall. _

The squirrel turned in Dovewing’s direction. She froze up, ceasing her breathing. It blinked, twitched its nose, then went back to shoving nuts into its cheeks.  _ Thank StarClan.  _

Dovewing wiggled her haunches as she watched the squirrel search the forest floor. All she could hear was the squirrel and the leaves shuffling around it.  _ This is exactly what I need. You’re mine little fella. _

Blossomfall sprung out from her hiding spot, startling the squirrel and sending it towards Dovewing.  _ Foxdung! _ The large rodent crashed into the gray molly, its tiny claws ruffling up its fur as it struggled to escape. Its heavy breathing and fast heartbeat were overwhelming, making it hard for her to grasp it. She tried to pin it down but missed and watched it as it frantically climbed the nearest tree to safety.

Dovewing’s ears flattened against her head. She looked down at her paws, which were shaking.  _ How could I forget Blossomfall was across from me?  _ She closed her eyes.  _ Why is it so hard to focus, I’ve been able to manage it before! _

“What was that?” Blossomfall hissed. “You had the squirrel, why didn’t you kill it?”

“I-I’m sorry, I panicked,” Dovewing mumbled. She looked up with a hopeful smile, “There’s still more squirrels out there, we can-”

“If you keep doing this we’re going to have nothing. Next time, pay attention and stop daydreaming.”

Dovewing’s mouth hung open as she watched Blossomfall pad away.  _ But I wasn’t daydreaming, I was trying to - _ She shook her head.  _ Maybe she’s right, I need to focus.  _ She hopped up and followed the molly in search of another squirrel, or any other creature they could catch together. 

Throughout the long journey searching the forest, she couldn’t get the feeling of dread off her mind. She remembered having similar episodes before, but they happened when she was an apprentice. Whenever everything became too much for her to handle, whether it be everything being too bright for her, or the sounds of cats and the forest assaulting her ears, she’d find a quiet place to relax and calm herself down.

“Hey Blossomfall,” Dovewing peeped.

“What is it?” The tortoiseshell huffed.

“Is it fine if I go hunt by myself?”

“I’m not your mentor, you don’t need to ask me to do anything. Just don’t die...or something.”

“Alright, see you-” Dovewing stopped herself. She trotted off without saying another word.

She wandered through the territory until she found a good, smooth stone to rest on. The stone jutted out of a small dirt ledge and was covered in a thick coat of moss. Dense ferns surrounded it, making it hard for her to get up at first, but eventually she was able to leap up and settle down on the soft moss.

She tucked her paws underneath herself and took in a deep breath.  _ Let’s try this again. I have to be able to do this, I need to catch a squirrel.  _ Her ears perked up and she began listening to the forest. Once more, she could hear the heartbeat of a rodent, this time a simple mouse. Like the squirrel, it was foraging for food. 

She purred.  _ There we go! I got this!  _ Suddenly, the mouse let out a horribly squeal that made Dovewing fluff up. The heartbeat of a cat filled her ears with its loud drumming sound. Everything became louder then, including the soft squish of the mouse’s body.

_ No...I don’t got it.  _ She pawed at her ears, trying to rid them of the disgusting sounds. It took her the strength of both paws pressing down on her shivering ears to finally get her to lose focus on the mouse and cat.  _ What’s going on? Why can’t I hunt?  _

She began kneading at the moss. The hypnotic movements of the moss kept her mind off the mouse’s death.

“Lionblaze can help me,” she whispered to herself, “he was my mentor, he knows how to comfort me. Or maybe Briarlight...she’s very good at that.” She purred at the thought of the molly. “Cinderheart-Cinderstar could help too…”

She looked behind her, “But they’re so far away now.”

A breeze kicked up that batted at her fur. She sighed in defeat as she rolled like a log onto her back. She watched the branches sway in the strong breeze. Some leaves spun down from the trees and scattered around Dovewing, a few landing on her fluffy belly.

She took in a deep breath.  _ What’s Blossomfall up to? She must’ve found some more prey already- _ Focusing on the thought of the tortoiseshell allowed her gaze to zoom through the forest to Blossomfall’s position. The tortoiseshell was stalking a dove, which didn’t really make Dovewing feel better considering the bird shared her name. Like the breeze, she silently slipped forward and pounced on the dove as it tried to fly away. She bit its neck, and the bird was dead. She said something to herself, then trotted off with the bird.

Dovewing shook her head and let her eyes return to  _ her _ surroundings. She rolled onto her paws and gave her whole body a shake to get herself ready. She paced around in circles, trying to prepare herself to go back out and try to bring some prey back. Doubts always managed to strike her from behind, scaring her into staying in the loop.

_ What would Lionblaze say? Uh…I don’t know what he’d say, he isn’t the cat to ask for advice.  _ She frowned, her face scrunching up.  _ Jayfeather must have some good advice, if I can think of some....Ahah! He told me that...mousedung! I just had it! _

She flopped back down. “I’m really gonna return to camp empty-pawed,” she sighed. “Sandstorm will understand, she’s an understanding molly. Wait! Maybe Lionblaze can give me some of  _ her  _ advice!” She shot up and off the rock. “Why didn’t I think of this-”

“You’ve been doing this while I’ve been hunting?” Blossomfall hissed as she walked into the clearing. “I thought you were going to bring  _ something _ back, and not a motivational speech.”

“Sorry...I just can’t hunt, everything’s too loud and it’s hard for me to focus. I’ll get some prey for the Clan, I promise,” Dovewing lowered her head.

Blossomfall tilted her head, “What do you mean everything’s so loud? The forest’s always been loud, even during Leaf-fall. That’s just the forest.”

“It’s always been loud for me, but now it’s like... _ extra _ loud. I-I can’t really explain it.”

“Just bring some prey back, anything,” her voice became a bit softer as she turned and trotted off.

Dovewing felt a bit better with Blossomfall not clawing at her. Hearing the heartbeats of all the prey she was going to kill, or attempt to kill with her current situation, was going to make her shiver, but she’d have to get over it to help feed her Clan. 

Hunting patrols were scarce due to the amount of injured cats, so prey was scarce in camp as well. Anger built up in Dovewing’s chest as she thought about not helping to feed the injured cats, to not being able to feed Briarlight, whose injury had gotten worse.  _ I have to bring something back! I just have to! There are too many cats who need food to stay alive! _

She trudged through the undergrowth of the forest, mouth open as she took in the scents of the forest. A diverse arrangement of birds and rodents were wandering the forest preparing for the coming leaf-bare, all of their scents drifting into Dovewing’s thoughts with varying levels of importance. She paused when she could hear a faint rustling nearby.

She took in a deep breath.  _ What would Sandstorm tell Lionblaze? He’s strong but also soft-hearted, he is very emotional...sort of like I am.  _ She crouched into an opening in a bush, slowly moving forward. Only a few tail-lengths away was a warbler, hopping around and pecking at the ground. A few more warblers joined it, letting out soft tweets in rapid succession. 

_ She’d probably tell him to focus-SHE’D TELL HIM TO FOCUS ON THE PRESENT! _ She nearly stomped her paws on the ground in excitement, but contained that feeling to keep herself hidden.  _ Alright, keep your head in the present. You have to catch one of these warblers. You will bring the warbler back at Sunhigh… _

Keeping her tail low to the ground, but not too low to disturb the leaves on the ground, she stalked forward. Her pupils widened as she got closer and closer to one of the bright warbler. Finally, the warbler hopped closer to her hiding spot, blissfully unaware of her presence.

She pounced, grabbing a hold of the warbler and swiftly biting its neck. The other warblers flew off quickly, letting out alarm calls to alert one another to the danger. She dropped the warbler so she could get a good look at it. _That was a good catch! It looks like it’s just taking a nap!__  
_ She looked up at the sky. The sun had moved up in the sky just a bit, from what Dovewing could see through the thick ceiling of leaves. She had ample amount of time to continue hunting. She buried the warbler, making a mental note of the surroundings of the prey, then went off to find some more.

_ I’m doing great at this! _

She stepped on a buried twig and heard the sound of a vole scurrying off.

_ Maybe not the best...but I’m doing great so far! I caught a warbler. Maybe I can catch something else before Sunhigh! _

With gained confidence in each step she took, Dovewing made her way through the forest, head held high out of pride, to keep herself happy, and to keep her nose alert for new prey scents. She ended up heading down towards the lake. As she got closer and closer to the shore, she could not only smell a good amount of prey, but she could feel the crashing waves fill her ear. The sound of the water lapping against the many pebbles on the shore made her shiver with delight.

The loud crunch of leaves made her jump in surprise. Her ears drew back and her body pressed against the ground. She could hear her own heartbeat. Images of red and crimson filled her gaze, the rustling growing louder.  _ It’s probably just a squirrel...calm down... _ She covered her eyes and took in deep breaths.

“Did I scare you?”

Toadstep hopped out, a squirrel at his paws. “I’m so sorry! I didn’t realize you were here! I thought you were with Blossomfall. Did you lose her?”

Dovewing blinked. “Uuuuhh, I-I, uh, didn’t lose her. I just decided to go hunting on my own.”

“Are you alright? You look like you just saw a monster.”

“Yeah...I think I’m fine.”

“Have you caught anything yet?” he asked, tilting his head. “I don’t see any prey around you.”

“I caught, uh, a warbler,” Dovewing’s voice was quiet. “I buried it so I could come back to it later.”

“Alright!” Toadstep screeched like an owl. “Oh! Uh, sorry,” he licked his chest in embarrassment. “You sure you’re fine? You’re still bristling.”

Dovewing looked over her shoulder to see all her fur was puffed up. She shook her pelt. “I’m fine, really, I am,” she smiled. “You just scared me, that’s all.”

He nodded, “Okay, if you say so.” Seemingly forgetting his squirrel, he trotted off with his tail held high.

Dovewing sighed and looked to her paws. She wiggled them in the grass, making the blades shiver.  _ Why can’t I focus? Why can’t I just stop being scared?  _ She sighed and glanced over to where Toadstep once stood.  _ Mousedung! _

“Hey Toadstep you forgot your squirrel!” she turned her head and yowled. ‘Toad...step…”

Instead of Toadstep arriving a massive stag appeared. Dovewing backed away, eyes wide. Her ears turned towards the stag, listening to its heavy breaths. The stag had a thick coat of fur around its neck that was snow-white, while the rest of its body was a deep russet with faint stripes like a tabby cat. Its antlers brushed against the branches of the tall trees. 

“The water will rise,” the stag said, “and it will flood ThunderClan soon enough. You must be prepared to fight the water and not let it consume your Clan. You must find the other three, for they will help guide you, and you will help guide them to save the other Clans.”

Dovewing shook, “W-Who are you? Why me!?”

The stag leaned over, “You have not finished your journey, Dovewing.” It raised its head, then walked off into the trees, vanishing without a sound. 

“Dovewing, you called me?” Toadstep hopped back over. “Oh! My squirrel! Forgot about it, silly me. Should’ve noticed I wasn’t dragging it between my paws.”

Dovewing laughed nervously.  _ What was that thing? That wasn’t a normal stag... _ Taking in multiple deep breaths, she was able to pull herself to her paws and walk forward. She headed in the direction she came from to retrieve her warbler.  _ I need to tell Jayfeather, he must know something about this. _

She picked up the pace, eyes squinted as she pushed through the branches of large bushes and the leaves of fronds of similar sizes.  _ Why would that stag come to me and not Jayfeather? I don’t know anything about StarClan!  _ Her walk became a trot.  _ Who are the three? Are there other cats with powers we don’t know about? _

Her trot turned into a full sprint. Small twigs brushed combed through her thick fur as she raced through the forest. Her mind was filled with thoughts she’d never had before, and some she had when she had just learned she was part of the prophecy.  _ I can’t deal with this right now! I just need some time to breathe but I can never get that! _

She spun on the back of her paws to head over to where the buried her warbler. She dug it out like a mad mole, sending dirt flying behind her, some of it getting stuck on her pelt. “I just want to be a normal warrior, I don’t need anything from StarClan right now,” she hissed under her breath as she retrieved her warbler.  _ I just want to settle down for once! _

_ I can’t hunt, I can’t talk, I can’t do anything right! _

She picked up her warbler and bolted in the direction of camp. Birds scattered as she ran past them, mice scuttled away, but she was too focused on getting back to camp and seeing Jayfeather that she could care less about all the prey she was missing. Her grip grew stronger on the warbler as she grew closer to the camp, the scents of her clanmates washing onto her face, almost making her sneeze with their strength.

Just before the thorn tunnel she began to slow down. She breathed through her nose, her nostrils flaring as she wheezed. Once she regained her breath she slowly walked down the thorn tunnel; if she went any faster she was bound to tumble down and injure herself. 

The camp was more alive than it was in the early morning. Prey had been taken from the fresh-kill pile, leaving it almost empty; a small mouse and bird was all that remained. She placed her warbler on the small excuse for a pile, then turned and headed towards the medicine den.

Jayfeather met her at the entrance, almost bumping into her. His long whiskers sensed her before he did. He muttered, “Would you mind not bumping into me? I don’t want a bloody nose today.”

“Sorry Jayfeather,” Dovewing looked down, “but I really need to talk to you.”

“How important is it?”

“I saw a vision in the forest, I think there may be another prophecy or  _ something _ going on.”

Jayfeather twitched his whiskers. “We’ll speak in the back of my den.” He flicked his tail and led her through the wall of lichen protecting the den.

Near the entrance was where most of the injured cats slept. Rosepetal and Foxleap slep across from one another. Foxleap looked like a poppy flower due to the amount of blood staining his pelt. Rosepetal had multiple deep bite marks on her flank with fur missing around them. Despite the warriors’ injuries, they slept peacefully. Beside Rosepetal was Berrynose, who was half-awake. His wounds were covered in multiple layers of cobwebs and poultice.The cream tom raised his head and glared at Jayfeather as he passed. 

Near the end of the cave, closest to the pool of water in the cave, was Briarlight. Her bite wound was puffy and the fur around it was disturbed by the cobwebs and poultice applied to it. It looked better than when Dovewing saw it the prior day, but it still made her wince. 

Jayfeather stopped behind a small stone next to the pool. The stone helped provide a barrier between the injured cats and the two. “So,” he said, “what did you see?”

Dovewing spoke quickly, “I saw a russet stag with this white neck that looked like a mane. It was massive, as tall as the trees. It told me that the water will rise and flood ThunderClan, and that I can’t let the water consume my Clan. It also mentioned three other cats, probably from the other Clans.”

“That’s it?”

“I-It also told me that I wasn’t finished with my journey, then it vanished.”

Jayfeather’s face scrunched up for a moment. He then looked towards Dovewing. “I honestly have no clue what that stag is or what StarClan would send it. StarClan’s too confusing, they have to make everything a game!’ He hissed. “Wish they’d make things easy.”

“Who do you think the three cats are?”

“I don’t know if you don’t know. I can’t read the stag’s mind since it’s gone now. I’m sorry but I can’t help you with this,” he sighed. “Wait...Aren’t you supposed to be on a hunting patrol? Did you just  _ leave _ ?”

“I brought a warbler back…” Dovewing shuffled her paws. “I just thought you’d want to know as soon as possible.”

“Well, at least you brought something back.”

Dovewing dipped her head to Jayfeather, forgetting he couldn’t see her performing the gesture, and walked around the pool to Briarlight. The brown molled stirred when Dovewing walked past. She opened her blue eyes and yawned. 

“Good morning, Dove,” Briarlight purred. “Came to shower me in affection once more?”

Dovewing curled up beside her. She put her nose to Briarlight’s head. “I guess so.”

Briarlight nudged Dovewing’s nose off and licked her on the cheek. “That’s good, because I wanted to talk to you about something. I was going to tell you yesterday, but I forgot. Now I remember, so I’m gonna tell you.”

“Lay it on me, I’m all ears.”

“I was thinking, once my bite wound has fully healed, or mostly healed, that you can help me hunt. I want to go out into the forest more often. I remember when Bumblestripe took me out there and I almost caught a mouse,” she looked away, “it was the best day of my life since the tree fell.”

“I-I…” Dovewing frowned, “I don’t know if I can teach you how to hunt. I can’t really hunt myself, uh, at the moment…”

“What do you mean?”

“I was only able to bring back one bird today. I could’ve brought back more...but I just couldn’t focus, and when I did focus I focused on the wrong thing! I don’t know why but I just can’t hunt, and when I can it’s like a one-time thing.”

Briarlight nuzzled Dovewing. “Maybe you just need some rest. You’ve been stressed lately, and I don’t blame you. Don’t stress over not being able to hunt, you’re grieving and have a lot of weight on your back.” She leaned back, “Once you’re ready to go hunting again, promise me you’ll try and help me out?”

_ How long is that going to take?  _ Her gaze went from Briarlight to Jayfeather. The blind medicine cat was smiling. The smile was contagious. 

Dovewing purred, “I promise.”


End file.
